UNIT 8 CIVIC NARRATIVE

 

            All communities have, with very few exceptions, the same social makeup: Homeowners, business owners, parents, teenagers and the social strata composed by grandparents and the like.

            In order to address and reach these different classes of people, a tailored approach to each is needed:

Homeowners concerns are clear-cut. They need the homestead to be solid and the home is the center of their universe and their place of refuge. Their concerns are centered in having the home in good condition and they are really affected by the inadequacies of the state or government when it comes to providing the services required to survive, they need the insurance company to pay-up so that they can go about their business of rebuilding their homes. They will be more receptive to messages that address the need for the insurance companies to disburse the necessary monies for the rebuilding as well as the provision of a safe environment for their children to grow and develop.

             Business owners require another approach. Their concern is based almost entirely in having a viable community where their goods and/or services are in demand. As such, they require the state to provide for the rebuilding of the community because the community is the backbone and source of income of their business. They need to be presented with concrete plans for the rebuilding of the community not with flights of fancy and proposals that are not achievable.

Parents, as a group, tend to identify themselves with the homeowners since their needs are very closely related. They need, plans that are feasible and that enhance the safety of their children. The children are the principal concern and as such, the approach with them is to make sure that the community is thriving and safe for their offspring. This means that, in order to reach them, concrete ideas that addresses their primary goal to ensure the well-being of the children are required. These plans need to be ready to implement in the short term. And they have the greatest motivation of all the groups mentioned.